Our very own Professor Roger Baker is facilitating a one day workshop on Emotional Processing Therapy for PTSD in Leeds on 26th October 2018.

The workshop will explore what an emotional processing style is and how this is relevant to the development and presentation of PTSD, there will be a range of teaching, skills training, role play, discussion and exploring case studies.

Don’t forget, BUCRU can provide FREE methodological advice and support in designing your research project. We’re based on the 5th floor of Royal London House so feel free to pop in and see us, call us on 61939 orsend us an email.

NERC is aiming to develop its current and future strategy for environmental omics research. To achieve this, they are holding a community workshop in Birmingham on 2 May 2018, with the support of a focused working group, to provide evidence and advice on the future direction of environmental omics and to provide recommendations on the capability of the community to deliver omics based research.

Objectives of the workshop

To engage the environmental community in:

exploring key research opportunities within environmental omics (now and in the future)

exploring external factors that influence and impact on environmental omics (now and in the future).

To help develop NERC’s strategy for environmental omics.

To help consider capabilities needed to support a future strategy and omics research.

Workshop outputs

The results from the workshop will be collated into a report with the help of the working group, which will then be used to inform NERC’s strategy for omics. This report will also be used to support the future NERC strategy for supporting omics capability through services or facilities.

How to attend

NERC aim to offer places to everyone who would like to attend but, due to limitations in the venue capacity, they will allocate numbers across institutions should all places become full.

If you wish to apply to attend this workshop, please complete the online registration form. The closing date for registration is 16:00 on 17 April 2018. Submission does not guarantee attendance.

Once registration is confirmed, you will be asked some questions to aid the organisation and structure of the workshop. NERC will pay travel costs associated with attendance.

Reflections on a Creative Writing Workshop for Academics at BU, led by Kip Jones

By Susanne Clarke

I am sitting here on a Saturday morning, daunted by the task ahead of me. I am in charge of writing a blog on behalf of a wonderful group of people who I spent a couple of days with at the beginning of January, (oops, I am already overselling myself, I am actually bringing together a blog using material they have given me). The group, as promised has sent me their “postcards”, snippets revealing their inner most reflections of the experience we shared.

Perhaps I’d better reveal more of our journey and tell you a bit about the group. We came together having booked our place at the auspiciously titled “Creative Writing Workshop for Academics” led by the legend that is Kip Jones. I would say it was a journey that we would all do again in a heartbeat.

Kip invited us, compelled us, to discard the shackles of academic or more formal forms of writing; we breathed in deeply and sought to find our inner selves, the child unconstrained by conventions that have both helped and hindered our writing over the years.

So, applying all that I learned from Kip, I am not going to over-analyse my writing and I will go with what feels right. Studying the ‘postcards’ from the group – Peter’s postcard will come first, just because it feels right, he sums up the experience for us all really.

From Peter Wolfensberger:

postcard to myself or

everything matters and nothing really does unless the moment you belong and love – exercise one

Struggling with my thesis I considered the creative writing workshop as a source for inspiration. So, I travelled long distance just to be confronted with myself and who I am and writing the story of my life on a postcard! Really?! Yes, – and no, there is more: Watching two boys on a crowded beach in the twenties has as much to do with me as trying to make sense of dreams that I can never remember. Writing a poem, a script treatment, a story, my story? In the end, it’s all just a tagline away from my thesis… But hey, I belonged to this wonderful group of people who kind of tried to do the same or something very different. Love you all! ‘

A bit more to reveal here with Mark’s postcard:

From: Mark Readman

Dear Group

‘Taglines, poems, life stories on postcards, writing, sharing, reading aloud and, ultimately, bringing my academic work to life through the art of storytelling – what a great way to start the new year!’

Now back to me. The writing is now getting more difficult. I can’t really complete with the beauty of the words conveyed in the postcards. Kip did promise that our first attempts will be quite bad and will need plenty of re-write. So, I walk away, I head off to make a cup of tea and read The Guardian. Nothing much to learn about me from my reading choice, nor, did I expect to learn much from it. I read it because I enjoy a few of the Saturday regulars and primarily because it’s still free on line. I click on one of my favourite columns, “Blind date” and this week’s column looks promisingly uplifting, entitled; “We parted with a kiss”. It was a good read, and I wondered if the format could be borrowed for the blog. And so I try below:

Reflections on our ‘Blind Date’ with Kip

From: Susanne Clarke

The scene: The Group meets each other and Kip for our first “Blind Date”.

What were we hoping for:

Improvement, enlightenment, and perhaps a cry from the heart to help with the struggle that is a life centered around writing, at the very least, some basic hints and tips and a creative start to the year.

What we weren’t expecting, but I think we were all secretly hoping for as Caroline put so well in her postcard, “…one thing that I did take away from the creative writing workshop was passion and confidence in creative writing.”

Our First Impressions:

Positive, the group were warmly welcomed, Kip was laid back, relaxed and we got a sense it was all going to be ok. Kip set us some homework – to recall our night time dreams. I think we were all slightly scared.

What did we talk about:

Everything and anything, somehow Kip got us to reflect deeply, perhaps share things we wouldn’t normally be so bold with. Kip shared intimate reflections with us and made it ok to share back.

Any awkward moments:

There really should have been, we were stretched, we cried, we laughed, however, I don’t recall anything being awkward and I can’t find a hint of this in the postcards.

Although, if I am honest there was a moment for me. When Kip set us the task to create poems from our recollection of recent dreams, as a lifelong fan of Pam Ayres, my poem had to rhyme, consequently, my attempt lacked the depth of feeling conveyed by the poems written and read out loud by others in the group. But it did rhyme. I did feel slightly awkward, mine was rather light, however, in the end it was alright.

Good table manners?

We did lunch as a group, it was a great ending to our adventure, and our table manners were impeccable, as far as I could tell.

Would we introduce Kip to our friends?

A resounding yes, why wouldn’t anyone be less than delighted to meet Kip, and I would happily introduce Kip and the whole group to all my friends.

Describe Kip in three words:

Charismatic, warm and unconventional

What do we think Kip made of us?

He told us we were the best group he had ever taught, he was probably lying. He made us feel special though.

Did you go on somewhere?

This is where I will leave the ‘Blind Date’ format and head to something slightly more hypothetical, we are all now continuing somewhere, we are improved from our experience, but taking different paths. Let’s now share some more postcards from the group. I guess where we go next in our journey remains to be seen.

From: Trevor Hearing

Dear Group

….‘Kip’s Tree of Performative Social Science is a rare species that grows over ground and underground with each workshop I attend, sending hidden signals around the world through its mycelium that it is OK to write about yourself as a source of knowledge because in doing so we are feeding others with the compost of our imaginations. I learned the value of metaphor at this workshop’….

Love Trevor xxx

From: Caroline Jackson

Dear friends,

“…. The interventions offered by Kip and my workshop colleagues were productive in many ways. I came away with the following: ​

I like writing.

I can let go and write something not directly related to an academic output and it be worthwhile.

Some questions and techniques to use in future writing activities, academic or not.

Some ideas for my own students on their creative thinking and work.

Wish you were here, love Caroline xxx

From: Carly Stewart

Dear group

…” It opened up my thinking and reconnected me to the heart-felt reason I enjoy academia in the first place. I had time and space to think deeply about ideas and new ways to express them, not for outcome or in the surface skimming tone so often required of us. And the epiphany for me was that dedicating time for creative space did not send me spinning off on a tangent from academia but instead loosened my thoughts and reconfigured them in a way that inspired me to pick up the reins of academic writing once again.”

Love Carly xxx

And finally, from me (Susanne). I spent time with a colleague this week writing with a deadline to submit an abstract. I approached this with more confidence and my biggest lesson from Kip – I could hear his voice, “work on a catchy title” he said this a few times. Our title begins with “Shrek and the Onion…. “ It wouldn’t have done before Kip entered my life and thoughts. Will our abstract take us to the conference in the sun, who knows?

PS We would also like to thank others in the group who are not represented here but who contributed towards the experience.

BBSRC, Defra and NERC, in partnership with the Sustainable Intensification Research Network (SIRN), are holding a workshop for researchers with interests in or expertise relevant to the sustainable intensification (SI) of agriculture. This workshop aims to build on the legacy of Defra’s Sustainable Intensification and provide opportunities to link with other current sustainable intensification activities. The aims of the workshop are:

To bring together the wider UK SI community with researchers involved in SIP to facilitate networking and the identification of opportunities for collaboration, building on the legacy of SIP.

To stimulate the development of high quality research proposals related to SI that address relevant research challenges and explore new ways of approaching SI.

To raise awareness of relevant Government and Research Council interests and potential funding opportunities.

There is no cost to attend the workshop, overnight accommodation (on 28 February 2018) and meals will be provided free of charge. Attendees will be expected to cover their own travel costs.

The workshop will include:

The legacy of SIP

Research challenges (and gaps) to address policy and practice needs for SI

Scientific opportunities to address those challenges

Defra and Research Council perspectives and priorities for SI research

Facilitated networking to explore collaborative opportunities

Subsequent access (limited to applications led by workshop participants) to modest funding opportunities from SIRN and Defra to facilitate the further development of collaborative proposals

The Sustainable Intensification Research Platform

The SIP is a Defra and Welsh Government funded initiative that was established to identify ways of increasing farm productivity, while reducing negative environmental impacts and enhancing ecosystem services. SIP is a multi-partner research programme including farmers, industry experts, academia, environmental organisations and policymakers. The Platform consists of three linked and transdisciplinary research projects designed to explore opportunities and risks for sustainable intensification at the farm and landscape scale. The SIP will end in November 2017 and through this workshop BBSRC, Defra, NERC and SIRN hope to help the SIP community and others to build on its legacy. That legacy is a broad one, which includes data, tools, resources, experimental sites and capabilities, and a large and well-connected community of practice.

How to attend

This workshop is for research leaders currently working on or with interests relevant to SI.

Please fill in the from below and return to sustainable.agriculture@bbsrc.ac.ukby 5 January 2018, 4pm. If you have any questions, please use the above email address. Successful applicants will be informed by email during the week beginning 15 January 2018.

Dr Sachiko Takeda, in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Sheffield and Women and Work Research Center (Japan), has been carrying out a research project ‘Developing Women’s Careers in Japan’, funded by the British Academy and Leverhulme. As part of the research finding dissemination, Sachiko and the team recently hosted a workshop at J.P. Morgan’s head office in Tokyo; welcoming 40 attendees from industry, mainly representatives of large organisations’ CSR and diversity related activities. The venue was provided through Ms Tsui, Head of Global Philantropy, Asia Pacific at J.P. Morgan Chase, who supported the project’s purport.

Photo courtesy of Kanae Tomiyama

The project corresponds to a recent call for emergency measures to create a better work environment for women’s career development. Despite that, Japan has one of the most educated female populations in the world, women are often reported to face substantial difficulties in advancing careers at Japanese firms. Nevertheless, some women do manage to progress to senior levels, and it is the aim of the project to understand their career experience, particularly the problems they had faced and how they overcame those barriers. To achieve this aim, Sachiko conducted 25 face-to-face interviews with Japanese women who held managerial and professional roles in large enterprises.

At the workshop, the project team presented the summary of findings and made the following three suggestions to Japanese organisations: 1) organise workshops to raise awareness of male managers; 2) establish practices of women-to-women mentoring; and 3) improve work-life balance for both men and women. In the panel discussion that followed the presentation, the panellists encouraged women to propose, create and implement new systems themselves at organisations for women’s career development. At the same time, the importance of including small and medium sized organisations, which are the majority in Japan, in the movement and extinguishing prejudice against single and/or childless women was also claimed.

Innovate UK, BEIS and the Research Councils are seeking academics, innovators and thought leaders to participate in an engagement workshop to review and validate the proposed Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (ISCF) theme, “Prospering from the energy revolution” which has an aspiration to create a number of “whole system”, local energy demonstrators around the UK to accelerate the energy system transition.

Secure, affordable and clean energy is critical to our economic productivity, competitiveness, and employment. Optimising the transition in the UK first helps our economy to thrive while also opens up domestic markets and immense export opportunities for UK businesses. The UK is taking a lead in the move to a cleaner system.

A series of local demonstrators across the UK is now essential to serve as ‘innovation runways’ that link up new solutions, assess and prove clean, affordable energy outcomes in the real world, and launch innovative businesses into commercial readiness, prepared for export.

For further information about the workshop and to submit an Expression of Interest form please see the registration page.

Peer Review: The nuts and bolts is a free half-day workshop for early career researchers and will explore how peer review works, how to get involved, the challenges to the system, and the role of peer review in helping the public to evaluate research claims.

Should peer review detect plagiarism, bias or fraud? What does peer review do for science and what does the scientific community want it to do for them? Should reviewers remain anonymous? Does it illuminate good ideas or shut them down?

To apply to attend this workshop, please fill out the application form by 9am on Tuesday 25 April: http://bit.ly/2mCFsyr

The “AniNex” (www.aninex.org) is an EU FP7 funded exchange project, which is designed to prepare and lead the development of next generation techniques related to computer animation and its applications. The workshop will be coordinated as part of the Edutainment conference programme at Bournemouth in June 2017.

Authors are welcome to send their queries through email to Dr Jian Chang at: jchang@bournemouth.ac.uk

We would like to invite you to participate in the workshop on Computer Animation Techniques, which will be held in Bournemouth in June 23, 2017. We would also like to invite you to join the international conference Edutainment 2017 in June 26-28.

The event will publish a post proceeding in Lecture Notes in Computer Science series.

Submission of extended abstracts (up to 2 A4 pages): 23rd Apr, 2017

Notification of results (successful submissions will be invited to be presented as either full papers or posters at the workshop, all of which will be invited to submit a full version to be considered for the LNCS): 2nd May, 2017

A workshop at the Commonwealth Secretariat, organised by Bournemouth University (BU), will explore the impact of Brexit on trade policy and agreements.The two-day workshop, Navigating the Evolving Free Trade Agreements Landscape: Implications of Brexit, will take place in London on 6 and 7 February 2017.

It will feature international speakers from a range of academic and professional backgrounds around the theme of trade policy post-Brexit, with a keynote address by Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP.

Mr Clifton-Brown MP is the Co-Chair of International Trade and Investment All Party Parliamentary Group and will discuss the UK’s trade priorities in 2017.

Deliberations throughout the workshops will focus in particular on Brexit issues including consequences for global trade relations, public procurement, and the perspective of businesses.

The workshop is part of an Economic and Research Council (ESRC) funded research project entitled ‘Transformations in Global Governance: Integration via Free Trade Agreements’ (GIFTA).

It is being held jointly with the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, and will feature four Round Table discussions and several paper presentations on Brexit and the future of trade policy.

Professor Sangeeta Khorana, Professor of Economics at BU, is the Principal Investigator of the ESRC research project.

She said: “The aim of the workshop is to improve evidence-informed policy and practice by facilitating mutual engagement between academic, business and policy communities around current and future policy needs following the vote to Brexit.”

The workshops will provide an update to EPSRC and ICT Theme strategies and policies, and guidance on applying for grants. The workshops will be attended by a number of EPSRC staff but also by experienced academics from across the ICT portfolio who will provide guidance and mentoring throughout the two days. The events will include a number of facilitated sessions covering topics such as impact from research, career development and a number of new ICT Theme priorities. They will also include opportunities for networking with other ECR colleagues and the previously mentioned mentors.

Target Audience

The event will be of greatest interest to ICT researchers that have completed a PhD (or equivalent qualification) within the previous ten years, are eligible to hold an EPSRC grant and hold few or no grants as Principal Investigator.

However, they do not wish to be prescriptive based on years of post-doctoral experience and welcome applications from prospective participants with a different pattern of academic experience, early career researchers based in industry and postdoctoral research assistants who are hoping to take lectureship positions in the near future. The internal assessment process will take into account the need for a balance of attendees across career stages.

Applying to Attend and Selection Procedure

Those wishing to attend the workshop should complete the short Expression of Interest (EoI) form on this page. This will be used to select participants based on their justification of attendance as described in their EoI submission. In addition, EPSRC will also ensure a balanced representation of organisation, research area, expertise and career stages.

Places are limited and the number of participants from a given organisation may have to be restricted in the event of multiple applications. EPSRC are committed to a policy of equal opportunities. Selection will primarily be based on justification of attendance. However, EPSRC is hoping to improve attendance by underrepresented groups at workshops and will consider this when selecting attendees.

NERC, the EA and Defra are interested in identifying the key environmental research priorities related to using natural processes to reduce flood risk, with a view to potentially developing a collaborative research programme in this area. To support this process a scoping workshop will be held on 09 June 2016. This is a great opportunity to contribute towards a potential funding stream at its inception.

Are you applying to the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships scheme in September 2016?

Although the call does not formally open until 14/4/16, now is the time to start working with your potential fellow to ensure that your application is ready in good time. This is a popular scheme for applications from BU and, as it has a deadline of 14/9/16, this puts pressure on your fellow academics undertaking quality reviews at an already busy time. You may also wish to avoid writing your application in August when you are preparing for the new academic year.

To this end, RKEO are providing a two-day workshop with Dr Martin Pickard (our external bidding consultant) on 16th and 17th March 2016 for BU academics and we have now confirmed additional workshop dates on the 24th and 25th of May 2016 when the workshop will be repeated – we will, however, be gauging demand for this. This workshop will take you through all aspects of exploring the call requirements and writing your bid, plus the opportunity to discuss your developing application with academics on the same journey.

You are encouraged to attend with your potential fellow but they will need to make their own travel arrangements and cover any financial outlay.

Booking are now open for these two-day workshops. Please note that you will need to attend both days. Please send your request to attend to Dianne Goodman, RKEO Funding Development Team Co-ordinator by Friday 11th March. Please let us know if you will be bringing your potential fellow so that sufficient catering can be ordered.

Are you applying to the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships scheme in September 2016?

Although the call does not formally open until 14/4/16, now is the time to start working with your potential fellow to ensure that your application is ready in good time. This is a popular scheme for applications from BU and, as it has a deadline of 14/9/16, this puts pressure on your fellow academics undertaking quality reviews at an already busy time. You may also wish to avoid writing your application in August when you are preparing for the new academic year.

To this end, RKEO are providing two-day workshops with Dr Martin Pickard (our external bidding consultant) on 16th and 17th March 2016 for BU academics and we have now confirmed additional workshop dates on the 24th and 25th of May 2016 – however we will be gauging demand for this. These workshop will take you through all aspects of exploring the call requirements and writing your bid, plus the opportunity to discuss your developing application with academics on the same journey.

You are encouraged to attend with your potential fellow but they will need to make their own travel arrangements and cover any financial outlay.

Booking are now open for these two-day workshop. Please note that you will need to attend both days. Please send your request to attend to Dianne Goodman, RKEO Funding Development Team Co-ordinator by asap. Please let us know if you will be bringing your potential fellow.

In its capacity as UK National Contact Point for the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, the UK Research Office is holding an information event for researchers who are interested in applying for the 2015 MSCA Research and Innovation Staff Exchange call, which opens on 6 January 2015, with a closing date of 28 April 2015.

Aim of the Research and Innovation Staff Exchange funding
The RISE scheme supports projects which promote international and/or inter-sectoral collaboration through staff exchanges and the sharing of knowledge and best practice. The scheme involves organisations from the academic and non-academic sectors, organisations based in Europe (EU Member States and Associated Countries) and outside of Europe (third countries).

Aim of Information EventThe event will provide participants with an in-depth overview of the RISE scheme. Participants should gain a clear understanding of the proposal format and the key issues relating to planning, writing and submitting proposals.

Who should attend?
The event is aimed at staff at UK academic and non-academic organisations, including industry, who are planning to submit a proposal to the RISE call.
Registration
Attendance is free of charge, but capacity at the venue is limited and places will therefore be allocated on a first come first served basis. Register via the UKRO workshop announcement.

The event will only take place if a minimum number of participants is reached. All interested participants will be notified by Friday 16 January 2015 at the very latest.

Agenda
The event will cover key issues relating to planning, writing and submitting proposals. A successful RISE 2014 project case study will be presented by the Principal Investigator.

In its capacity as UK National Contact Point for the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, the UK Research Office is holding an information event for researchers who are interested in applying for the 2015 MSCA Research and Innovation Staff Exchange call, which opens on 6 January 2015, with a closing date of 28 April 2015.

Aim of the Research and Innovation Staff Exchange funding
The RISE scheme supports projects which promote international and/or inter-sectoral collaboration through staff exchanges and the sharing of knowledge and best practice. The scheme involves organisations from the academic and non-academic sectors, organisations based in Europe (EU Member States and Associated Countries) and outside of Europe (third countries).

Aim of Information EventThe event will provide participants with an in-depth overview of the RISE scheme. Participants should gain a clear understanding of the proposal format and the key issues relating to planning, writing and submitting proposals.

Who should attend?
The event is aimed at staff at UK academic and non-academic organisations, including industry, who are planning to submit a proposal to the RISE call.
Registration
Attendance is free of charge, but capacity at the venue is limited and places will therefore be allocated on a first come first served basis. Register via the UKRO workshop announcement.

The event will only take place if a minimum number of participants is reached. All interested participants will be notified by Friday 16 January 2015 at the very latest.

Agenda
The event will cover key issues relating to planning, writing and submitting proposals. A successful RISE 2014 project case study will be presented by the Principal Investigator.

The British Science Association are inviting researchers from BU to attend a one-day training workshop which will develop their public engagement skills. This one-day workshop addresses the growing need for researchers to be confident at communicating and understanding the impact that their research has on society.

How does your research have an impact on society? And how does social media engage the public? Are there any ways of communicating your research better?

What are the benefits of attending the workshop?

It will help you to gain confidence in engaging the public with your research

It will also help to develop your understanding of the place of science within science and the impact that your work has on society.

It’ll make you aware of existing public engagement platforms

You will be able to learn about how social media can be used to communicate science to the public

You will be able to find your research ‘hook’ – what is the most exciting thing about what you do and your research?

The workshop will consist of practical activities which will help you to explore your work’s impact on society and improve your communication skills. It’ll also give you guidance on how to engage with different audiences.

The fee will include all resources, a full day’s tuition with experienced practitioners and refreshments during the day.

If you are new to BU, have missed the Brian training sessions or just need a refresher, the BRIAN team is looking to run some training sessions for academics to help you gain the most from BRIAN. The session covers how to set up and maintain your BRIAN profile, how to ensure your details are correct, how to request a photo is uploaded, how BRIAN links to your external staff profile and lots more.

These are hands-on sessions being run on both the Lansdowne and Talbot Campuses or one-to-one. To register your interest, please email the BRIAN team (BRIAN@bournemouth.ac.uk).